Salem, OR: Proponents of a statewide initiative to regulate the commercial production and retail sale of marijuana have turned in 145,000 signatures to the Secretary of State's office. The total is almost twice the number of signatures from registered voters necessary to place the measure on the 2014 electoral ballot.

State officials have until August 2 to verify the signatures.

The proposed ballot initiative (Initiative Petition 53) seeks to regulate the personal possession, commercial cultivation, and retail sale of cannabis to adults. Taxes on the commercial sale of cannabis under the plan are estimated to raise some $88 million in revenue in the first two years following the law's implementation. Adults who engage in the non-commercial cultivation of limited amounts of cannabis for personal use will not be subject to taxation.

On Tuesday, the measure's proponents, New Approach Oregon, debuted their first television ad in support of the initiative.

A statewide Survey USA poll released last month reported that 51 percent of Oregon adults support legalizing the personal use of marijuana. Forty-one percent of respondents, primarily Republicans and older voters, oppose the idea. The poll did not survey respondents as to whether they specifically supported the proposed 2014 initiative.

Alaska voters will decide on a similar legalization initiative in November. Florida voters will also decide in November on a constitutional amendment to allow for the physician-authorized use of cannabis therapy.

For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre, NORML Executive Director, or Erik Altieri, NORML Communications Director, at (202) 483-5500. Additional information about the initiative is available online at: http://newapproachoregon.com.

It's only a matter of time now. If I am not mistaken Oregon is already pretty lax on weed laws. It's not "legal but it's allot more tolerated then other places kind of like what we had in Colorado for several years before the new law. So I expect this law to pass. Other more conservative states will take more time but in 10 years most if not all of the USA will have retail stores.